Private Peaceful Returns Home
by BlackRoseSouth
Summary: Just my little tribute to Private Peaceful, this is what I thought might happen if Tommo came home after Charlie's death. I wrote this when I was about 10 so if it's rubbish I apologise
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**Two days after Charlie's death I received a letter saying to pack my things because an escort would be coming to take me to the harbour "I'm going home!" I was so overjoyed. I was going home to see Molly, Mother, Big Joe and little Tommo. It took me four days to get back to the little cottage, I call home. When I got back and opened the door Molly ran towards me and hugged me so tight I thought I would suffocate, "it's nice to have you back," she said. Then mother came out of the living room and I saw him, young Tommo. Mother then came to hug me before handing him to me. I suddenly noticed they were both wearing black dresses so I rushed upstairs to change into a suit that I found mother and Molly had bought me. That evening after supper as we were talking about what I had been doing in between fighting in France, there was a knock at the door and mother went to answer it I heard a small French voice speaking and then mother calling Molly to the door. Two seconds later I heard Molly scream there was a few nervous minutes before Molly and mother brought in a young girl, the most beautiful I had ever seen. She had black hair, blue eyes and wore a black dress with black tights and a pair of what looked like Spanish high heels. She looked about fifteen and I knew then that I could love someone more than Molly. "This is my cousin Danielle," Molly told us "she used to live in France before the war." At that moment I felt so guilty, I had been part of something that had pushed this beautiful girl from her home. I think she could see I was upset "I hope you visited my home town Etaples" she said cheerily "beautiful isn't it." Obviously Molly could tell I was getting nervous and started asking questions, "why did you come here anyway?" she asked.**

**"Well" Danielle answered "I do not think mama and papa wanted me any more so they left me on aunty and uncle's doorstep, I knocked on the door but there was no answer and the next thing I knew there was a envelope at my feet so when I followed the instructions that were inside they led me here."**

**"They obviously did not want any more children like me!" Molly sniffed. Then all of a sudden Danielle started crying "I know I'm not wanted!" Danielle explained.**

**"Nonsense!" mother exclaimed "you are wanted; in fact do you want to stay for the night?"**

**"Yes please!" Danielle answered.**

**"She could sleep in my bed and I will move in with big Joe for the night," I suggested.**

**"Good idea Tommo!" mother said**

**"I could not do such a thing!" Danielle exclaimed "I will sleep with some blankets on the floor."**

**"No you will not, you will sleep in my bed," I answered "and I will sleep with big Joe."**

**So the evening went on with another word on the subject.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**That night ended up lasting two months. It was great having someone the same age as me in the house all we talked about was what France was like before the war, I wasn't tense about it now and we had started sleeping in the same bed, with mother's permission of course. I had not been called back to fight yet so I got a job back on the farm where I had worked before I left. The farmer was glad to see me back and I did not get much work done the first day as he had been talking to me for most of the day. Six months after I had arrived back and had been married to Danielle I went home one evening to hear screams and shouts of surprise coming from inside the house, when I opened the door Danielle ran up to me and gave me a hug that was as strong as her cousins. When I asked what was going on she said that she would tell me over dinner. Dinner came and went and I forgot to ask her what had been up when I came home from work, eventually as we were sitting in front of the fire that evening she suddenly stood up and said to me, " you have been awfully quite and don't you want to know the good news?" I'm guessing I didn't give much of an expression because mother, Molly and Danielle were all looking at me with the strangest expressions on their faces. But I do have to admit I wasn't really listening and was a bit spaced out, I came out of my little wonderland and asked "I thought you were going to tell me over dinner but you never did." They must have thought I was the most stupid person ever as I suddenly realised that they had been waiting for me to ask. "Please tell me what was up when I came home from work?" I asked in the special voice I only used for special occasions or when I was alone with Danielle which was always a special occasion for me. "Well I went to see the doctor this morning because I hadn't been feeling very well and guess what he told me?" she replied with the biggest smile on her face I had ever seen. I was amazed when I saw everyone looking at me intently; even Big Joe and Little Tommo knew what was going on when I didn't. "I don't know, tell me?" I asked, I was now getting impatient and curious about what was going on that everyone but I knew about. "Tommo don't you understand?" I knew this was a rhetorical question so I let her carry on "Tommo, you can be stupid sometimes, I'M PREGNANT!" she screamed at me and those two words were just music to my ears I had always wanted children and as soon as I met Danielle I knew I wanted them with her. I must have been sat there processing this information for a while because I suddenly heard Danielle crying and saying that she had always thought I didn't want it and running out of the room and I then had Molly slap me around the face which must have brought me to my senses and I said "where has Danielle gone?" Molly looked at me as if I was stupid and replied "she just ran off to try and get rid of the baby because she thought you didn't want it." At those words I got up ran to the door and went straight out to look for her. I must have been looking over an hour before I just sat down and cried, I don't know how long it took for the rain to come but I didn't notice it, I was so numb all over, I had just lost the love of my life and my first child, she would never forgive me for the way I acted if she came back to the house, but even that had a slim chance of happening since she probably didn't want me anymore. I was cold, wet, numb in more ways than one and the saddest I had ever been. This even beat when Charlie died. So eventually I got up from where I sat and trudged home, ready to endure all the shouting I was going to get from Molly and mother when I got back and said I couldn't find her. But I didn't expect what I found when I got home…**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**I came in though the door to find not only mother, little Tommo, Molly and Danielle but most of the village was cramped around the house and everyone was like they were in mourning. As I walked into the room no one noticed me but I saw Danni standing at the front of the room looking like she was getting ready to say something but could not get it out, eventually she started and the whole room went silent, still no one had noticed I was here. I looked at her beautiful face as she started to speak. "Thank you all for coming today I know you all knew Tommo very well and we are all devastated he has gone…" Wait what I am right here, then it hit me all of these people were here because they thought I was dead. I looked up to see tears pouring down Danni's face as she continued. "It was a tragic accident that caused him to go the way he did falling into the river whist coming to look for me." The whole room went dead silent and I decided that now would be the best time to speak up. "I'm not dead." I called and the entire room turned to look at me in utter disbelief. I suddenly heard a scream and saw Molly and mother catch Danni as she fainted, I ran over and took her in my arms and started singing to her to get her to wake up. Slowly her eyelids fluttered open and focused solely on me and in that one moment so much happened, I embraced her and slowly but passionately kissed her and she me back with so much joy it could fill the whole room, everyone started cheering and suddenly a complete stranger ran though the door saying that there was a German in the town asking for a Julie De Pompadour of whom he was supposed to marry, according to her parents she had run away to live with her aunt and uncle. Danni's eyes went wide at this comment and she started to tremble. "What is wrong?" I whispered in her ear, she stiffened and turned to me with a look of pure fear mixed with a guilty, sad and betraying look on her face. "I am Julie De Pompadour." She informed me with tears building in her eyes like she was expecting me to shout, hit her and tell her to leave and never come back. Molly must have overheard our conversation as she suddenly bent down to our level and said to Danni, "I thought I recognised that name from somewhere, it is the name on your birth certificate is it not?" Danni looked down at the floor and cursed in French before looking back up and said, "yes Molly that is my birth name but I changed it when I came across and just hoped I would be able to start at a new beginning and none of them would find me," she looked down sadly and mumbled just under her breath though I still caught it "but they always have to do they not."**


End file.
